Lesson 49: Unit 189 - Linking Verbs

About this lesson

In this lesson you will learn what linking verbs are in English and how to use them correctly. You will understand the difference between action verbs and linking verbs, and you will practise using be, become, get, seem, appear and others in different contexts. Particular attention is paid to the difference between "be" (which expresses a state) and "get/become" (which express a change of state). Through exercises and an authentic text you will develop your ability to build correct sentences with these verbs.

40 minutes

What you'll learn

• Understand what a linking verb is and why it does not describe an action
• Distinguish the use of 'be' (state) from 'get' and 'become' (change of state)
• Use 'get + past participle/adjective' correctly in sentences
• Recognise and apply 'turn' for changes of colour
• Read and understand an authentic text with linking verbs at B1 level

Lesson vocabulary

• linking verb Common linking verbs are: be, appear, seem, become, get, look, sound, smell, feel, taste.
• appear Your flat appears to be brighter than when I last saw it.
• seem The teacher seemed unable to concentrate yesterday.
• become She became a good chess player at the age of 10.
• get married When did they get married?
• get lost We got lost the first time we went to Paris.
• get to know At first I didn't like her, but when I got to know her, she became my best friend.
• getting dark It's getting dark.
• turn red The traffic lights turned red, and the cars stopped.
• turn yellow In the autumn, leaves turn yellow and brown.
• get used to I got used to driving on the left quickly.
• become frustrated We become frustrated whenever the PC doesn't work as fast as we expect.
• become widespread Drug taking is becoming more widespread.
• get annoyed Don't get annoyed with me, but I've lost the car keys.
• focal point The PC has become a focal point of our lives both at work and at home.

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In other languages: Български